


Do Something Crazy

by Crowsister



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions
Genre: Canon-adjacent, Creative Usage of Biology in Pokemon, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-12
Updated: 2020-06-27
Packaged: 2020-08-19 18:47:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,389
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20214520
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crowsister/pseuds/Crowsister
Summary: Jolene Jokela is an ex-Rocket Grunt, trying to prove to everyone that she's better than what everyone thought she'd be. She doesn't count on finding a kindred spirit during her rehab program in Alola.





	1. Start Game [Copper Sun]

**Author's Note:**

> Before I start, I have to say that the idea for Jolene to be an ex-Rocket Grunt from another Guzma/Reader fic ages and ages ago. But I cannot find it. It featured an older sister character to Moon (who used sign language to communicate) and her name was Stella and there was neat usage of accents to do a reveal of her past. Though, that's where the similarities end since Jolene's connection to Team Rocket is...different. But I wanted to get that credit out of the way.
> 
> And to explain the tag "Canon-Adjacent": There's some stuff I've changed from the canon plot to adjust to the premise of Jolene. Such as the Mom character from Sun and Moon: I've lightly flushed her out, but after several months of not being able to find a name I liked for her, I decided to pull something that is decidedly My Brand and take that easter egg about the Mom being a Meowth-themed trainer to the next level.

<strike>It is a truth universally acknowledged,</strike>

<strike> Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is </strike>

There was a girl, once.

* * *

His voice hitched over the line after she accepted the video call, “Hang on, now. Gimme just a sec.” 

“S’not like I have a choice,” she mumbled, looking down at the table she was handcuffed to. She looked back up and could see his hand adjust the camera so the feed of him was straightened out.

“Hey there...Jolene, right?”

She schooled her face into indifference, not letting the jealousy show. He was her age and _free_. “Yup,” she answered, popping the p.

“Good afternoon, Jolene! So, I hear you’re interested in being the first person through the new Alolan Rehab initiative.”

“Anything beats sticking around in Kanto. Or Johto,” she replied. “Alola’s the right kind of far away, y’know?”

He studied her face for a moment and she wondered what he saw. A scar here and there on her pale, never-to-be-tanned face (one from an over-affectionate Ekans, one from an agitated Beedrill, maybe he could spot the start of the burn scar from her father’s Houndoom when she took an Ember to the face) and probably the bags under her teal eyes. She was glad that her hair was kind of growing back, even if they didn’t let her dye it in here — hated how this stranger would see her hair in its natural state of blonde.

“How much have you been told about Alola?” The man asked. He shook his head, laughing a bit when she shrugged. “Guess they were leaving that up to me then. Alola is a region made up of several islands. Might be the reason the region of chock full of nothin’ but rare Pokémon, yeah!”

She tilted her head, raising an eyebrow. “Yeah, basic island ecology. S’like the Sevii Islands, yeah? Isolated ecosystem means shit flourishes different, different food chains. Probably got a good measure of adaptive radiation with some Pokémon bein’ different from island to island. Probably a shit ton of invasive species from all the boat travel, yeah?”

The man’s face lit up like the sun and Jolene almost grimaced. People shouldn’t be allowed to be this cheerful. “Exactly! You didn’t mention on your application that you were this well-read about Pokémon ecosystems.”

“I can rattle off surface shit, but can’t go much deeper. Was always more a battler than a researcher.”

“That’s exactly one of the reasons why you’re one of the candidates to go on this experimental rehabilitation program: I research Pokémon moves and you have an interesting portfolio of Pokémon you’ve worked with. According to some of your police files, you’ve been noted for unorthodox usage of Pokémon moves and I’d like to see some of that in action.”

“Huh.” She sat back in the chair. “Sounds too good to be true, Professor...”

“Kukui,” he said. “You’d basically be undergoing the traditional Alolan island challenge, under my supervision. I’d set you up with a starter-”

“None of the regular fire-water-grass starters, please,” she said. She winced, realizing she was sounding snotty. “Especially fire. I don’t do good with fire types in general, in case the burn scars didn’t make that clear.”

Kukui pushed up his glasses, humming. “What sort of Pokémon are you alright working with?”

“Poison and bug types are what I prefer working with,” Jolene answered. “My best work battling was with an Arbok, but that Arbok was put down a year ago.”

“We have a bundle of cool poison and bug types here in Alola,” he replied, humming. “If I did select you, I could find a good candidate for you as a starter. There are some Ekans on a route close to my home. Would an Ekans be alright for you or would that bring up too many painful memories?”

“Prof, I’d love a new noodle jerk in my life,” she replied, letting herself smile. “I’m sure the local birds won’t mind a very slight decrease in predators eating their eggs either.” Jolene hummed. “Might be the best time to pick up an Ekans, honestly, after they eat a big egg. Sometimes they go for more than they can swallow and faint, the little idiots.”

“You’re very knowledgeable about them,” Kukui said, blinking owlishly behind his glasses. “I hadn’t noticed that. The Arbok I’ve seen use Stockpile and Swallow don’t seem to have that problem.”

“See, that’s where you’re jumping too far ahead,” Jolene replied. “Arbok have had _practice _doing that, yeah? It’s a built-up muscle thing, that’s why they can do it on command in a move. Ekanses are too itty bitty to swallow as Arboks does, the muscles aren’t developed fully. So they can safely swallow up to like...something the size of a purse, but some Pokémon lay _big _eggs. Younger ones tend to not have the smarts to avoid the big shit, they get greedy, boom. Fainted Ekans, prime for any scavenger to eat.”

Kukui nodded. She couldn’t tell if he looked intrigued or that was just more _cheer_, so she pulled the smile off her face. “Anything else about this program I should know about?” She asked. “Or anything you wanna ask me?”

“How comfortable are you with strangers knowing that you’re ex-Team Rocket?” He asked.

She snorted. “About as comfortable as a Bulbasaur on a rotisserie stick.”

“I’m...sorry, I don’t think I’ve heard that phrase before.”

“Basically means not comfortable at all,” she replied. “They’ve been knocked down before, yeah? They just keep getting up. And when they get up, the first thing they go for is the ex-members. Make ‘em rejoin or make examples out of ‘em. I don’t wanna rejoin, ever, period, so they’d make an example out of me.” She shrugged. “Don’t mind people knowing I’ve got a criminal history, though. Keeps ‘em on their toes and makes sure I don’t forget the things I’ve done.”

Kukui nodded, jotting something down at the desk. “That’s...a little cynical, but I think I can understand it. How do you feel about children?”

“I’m not fond of anyone younger than seven,” Jolene answered. “Seven and up’s okay. Ten and up is better. Absolutely _no _babies. Why?”

“Parts of the island challenge are run by children. They’re known as our trial captains. The cut-off age to be a captain is twenty, but plenty of the current lot are ten and up.”

“I’ll cut the swearing around ‘em and be on my best behavior with ‘em,” she said. “Mew knows that they don’t need to turn out like me. So are they like gym leaders or something else?”

“Something else,” Kukui answered. “Think of them as camp counselors. They set up an activity themed around a Pokémon type and supervise as the challenger goes through the activity. The adult in charge of the trial captains is the kahuna. You finish the trials for an island, then you challenge the kahuna, who functions like a gym leader and an Elite Four member. Once you beat the kahuna, you move to the next island.”

“Sounds nice enough,” Jolene replied, trying to sound as noncommittal as possible without giving away her interest too much. “Anything else I should know about or you wanna ask me?”

“Tell me about you. Sure, I’ve got your application, but that doesn’t tell me who you are.” He had a dog Pokémon jump into his lap, but he pushed it off with a laugh. “Rockruff, down! I can’t play right now.”

“Well...how about I tell you some stories about my old Arbok?” she asked, “Easy subject, won’t get too depressing.” She waited for him to nod before taking her free hand and pointing at the small scar on her face, a small knick under her left eye. “See this? This is from when the noodle was growing in his teeth. I raised the little shit, snagged his egg from another member that wanted to eat it. The little shit was trying to snuggle, but he slipped with his teeth. He was always getting things stuck in his mouth since snake Pokémon sense better with their mouths and tongues, but he’d just...put things in his mouth.” She hummed. “Once had a chair that big, bad Maniaㄧthat’s what I nicknamed my Arbok since he was so happyㄧdidn’t like. Just one specific chair. Made friends with other chairs, but this big leather chair I bought he wasn’t a fan of. At all. He’d avoid it as much as possible, to the point of climbing up my body to hide from it via coiling around _ me _ .” Jolene smirked as she got a laugh out of him for that. “Built a _ lot _of muscle, holding him up. It was annoying the first couple times, but sometimes I wonder if he did it just for an excuse to be close to me. They put him down because he was dubbed too aggressive to release into the wild. Call me a sugar coat candy queen, but I think he was just mad they separated him from me. Wouldn’t listen to me when I said he got anxious when separated from me and when a predator like that is anxious, it does one of the only things it knows it can do: lash out.”

“Absolutely, I’m surprised they hadn’t thought of that themselves,” Kukui replied. “That’s one of the major things that Alolan nurses are taught, not to separate predator Pokémon from their trainers if the trainer needs hospital care.”

“Smart. Was that you who gave that advice or someone else?”

“Not me, it’s one of the old pieces of advice that everyone’s grandma tells them,” he answered.

Jolene nodded, huffing a quiet laugh. “Glad that Alolan grandmas are smarter than Kanto’s police force then.”

The conversation fell for a moment as Kukui looked at her. She shouldn’t be surprised that the Professor, whose life work was studying shit, was studying _her. _Jolene tried not to shift uncomfortably in her chair.

“Okay,” the Professor replied, “I’m going to do something crazy.” He gave her a grin when she raised an eyebrow at him. He fiddled with something off-screen and brought out a handful of pictures. Of _her. _ “Which photo can I use for your Trainer ID?”

“I’m gonna use Trick Room here to swap our speeds,” Jolene replied, her eyebrows furrowing and her head tilting. “You’re...you’re accepting me?”

“Yeah,” Kukui answered, smiling. It was...less irritating now, his smile. “I have a good feeling about you. I’m going to ask some questions, just to make sure I’m introducing you to everyone right rather than assuming things from your application.”

“Would I be able to update my Trainer ID later?” she asked. “I kinda...hate my natural hair color.”

“Oh yeah, cousin, we can handle that when you get here.”

Jolene smiled a bit, letting herself feel a bit happy. “Okay. Then I guess until then...that picture? It’s got my good minty ombre hair in it.”

“And you’re smiling in it,” Kukui teased.

Jolene shifted her smile to a smirk. “Sure, sure. What’s next, prof?”

“I know Jolene Jokela’s on the application, but do you want a different name on the ID? People call you something else?”

“Let’s stick with Jolene and let people earn the right to call me Jo,” she joked.

He nodded, writing something down. “Okay. Can I run past a list of potential starters for you? You said poison and bug types, yeah?”

“Sure and yep,” Jolene answered.

“So we’ve got Ekans down, but lemme run the bug and poison types that are easy for me to grab,” Kukui replied. “We’ve got Caterpie, Ledyba, Spinarak, Grubbin, and Cutiefly.” He pulled out his phone, typing something quickly. He held it up so she could see a picture of two bug type pokemon. Jolene hummed, looking between the two. “This is Grubbin and this is Cutiefly. They’re local to the Alolan islands. Grubbin evolves from a pure bug type into a bug electric type and Cutiefly is a bug fairy type.”

“Hmmm...maybe I should go something new for me,” Jolene replied, “give you a new perspective on something you’re used to.”

Kukui’s eyes lit up. “Oh, that’d be fascinating. What are you thinking?”

“Let’s go with Grubbin,” Jolene replied. “I’ve got a good feeling about that little squirt.”

* * *

Jolene stepped off the plane and the taste of the air made her pause. She wiped her eyes, smiling a little. The Kanto police officer that came with her put a hand on her shoulder and she stepped forward as she wiped the smile off her face, making sure she was _a little _out of his reach. She spotted Professor Kukui and a woman standing at the exit gate of the landing strip. She put her bag over her shoulder and walked over to them.

The woman was tall, with tan skin and fluffy brown hair. Her face gave her the real-life feeling of what novel writers always meant when they said that a character had a kind face: rounded, easy laughter lines to spot, faint crows’ feet. She wore a white shirt and a long, yellow skirt.

“Hey, cousin!” Kukui waved when Jolene got into earshot. “Glad to see you in person.”

“Ditto,” Jolene replied, giving a small smirk. She tried not to pay the officer any mind. She gave a small wave to the woman. “Hey, I’m at a disadvantage. You probably know that I’m Jolene Jokela.”

The woman chuckled. “I’m Selina Calabrese. Kukui asked if I could house you while you’re here.” She gave a smile and nod to the officer and he backed up more. “Given that I have a history with Kanto’s police force and they trust me, this felt like a good compromise to give you the freedom to grow while you’re on the Island Challenge.”

Jolene nodded, not wanting to give away her happiness at hearing that this particular development. She tried not to flinch as Selina took her hand and gently lead her away from the officer and the landing strip. Kukui stayed behind, talking quietly with the officer.

Selina quietly said, “He’s getting the officer off your tail. You wanna see the house?”

“Yeah,” Jolene replied. “That sounds...nice.”

“I imagine not being in prison and handcuffs is even nicer,” Selina replied.

“Yeah, definitely,” Jolene replied. “I mean...that’s a huge motivation for applying for the program.”

“Makes sense,” Selina replied. She stopped walking, looking Jolene dead in the eyes. Jolene felt like a Ledyba being stared down by a Persian. “You’re serious about all of this, right?”

“About going through the program? Heck yeah I am,” Jolene replied. “I wasn’t a _ voluntary _member of that team. My dad forced me in after he went off his rocker when mom died. All I’ve been wanting is the chance to prove I’m not who he wants me to be. If I have to go through this challenge, play nice with the trial captains, and bond with some Pokémon for people to start believing that, then I’m going to be one hundred percent _ on that _ track.”

Selina nodded, a smile spreading across her face. “Good.” 

They got into a taxi and drove. They got to the city and then went on foot from there to a nice looking beach house. A Kanto Meowth sat on the railing of the porch, watching them as they walked up.

Jolene noticed all the boxes that weren’t unpacked. As if sensing that she was noticing that, Selina replied, “There’s some stuff in those boxes for you, some stuff is just me bringing more of my stuff from Kanto.”

Jo didn’t know what to say, looking at some of the boxes and seeing that, sure enough, some of them were labeled with her name.

“Your room’s down the hall, that way,” Selina replied. “If you wanna start unpacking your stuff.”

Nodding, Jolene slung her bag over her shoulder and mutely picked up one of the boxes. She walked down the hallway to the room, bumping the door open with a hip.

Looking over the room, this could have fit her old Unova room inside it, five times over.

* * *

_A little girl ran around her room, oblivious to it really being an adapted walk-in closet. She held a little Joltik in her hands._

_ “A little string here, please,” she whispered, pointing up at the wall. It complied and she grinned at it. Slowly, with a lot of difficulty, there was a little Joltik-made hammock and ladder for her in the corner of her room, high up along the wall. _

_ She nestled into it, holding her Joltik close. “Thanks, bud,” she whispered. She shuddered, hearing a loud slam from down the hall. She quickly pulled up the ladder. _

* * *

Jolene looked up at the far corner of the room, imagining that old Joltik-string hammock right there in that corner. She was too big for it now, but...it was the last gift she could remember that was truly _hers, _ for her and not her father_. _ And now she was being given a room, a bunch of shit in boxes, and a whole second chance to get an experience she never got in her childhood.

She muttered, “No fucking this up.” She put the box down and grabbed the others, not really caring if Selina thought she looked like a Druddigon on its hoard. She slowly started opening up the boxes, not letting herself really think about the contents as she got into a rhythm sorting everything into a rightful spot. She stood back when she was done, looking at everything that was...kind of hers? More hers than anything before.

A closet of clothes (actual clothes, not uniforms), complete with three pairs of shoes (hiking boots, sneakers, and high heels). A traveling backpack, a handful of Pokéballs, different Pokémon related medicines, a first aid kit, and damn near everything she’d need for a journey. 

Heck, Selina even got her some stuff to decorate the room with so it wasn’t so...barren. A stylized Arbok poster, a purple bean bag chair...the room must’ve been meant to feel like hers, Jolene realized as she wiped some freak moisture out of her eye. Try to make her feel included and give her actual things to lose if she messed up. It didn’t _feel _like Kukui’s speed, that kind of handling, so maybe that was on Selina?

She quickly changed clothes, wanting out of the scratchy Kanto souvenir clothes that they made her wear on the way over. A pair of green cargo pants and a sporty white shirt with “Wander Forever” in black bold letters on it later and Jolene felt...lighter. Prison therapist would say she probably felt more in control, that her problem had always been a lack of control in her life. Maybe that was it? Kukui seemed determined to try that hypothesis.

There were voices down the hall. She left her room, leaning up on her toes to try to be sneakier. Wasn’t meant to be though, when the Meowth spotted her as soon as she left the room and damn near charged her from the living room at the end of the hallway. Jolene snorted as it climbed up her leg, choosing to ignore the light pain of its claws pricking her now and then. She helped it up onto her shoulder, scratching it behind its ear as she walked out into the living room proper.

Kukui was there, talking with Selina in hushed tones. Jolene decided not to eavesdrop, heading out onto the porch and keeping herself within their line of sight (didn’t want them to think she was running away or anything). The muscles in her shoulders relaxed as she looked over the area, bathed in moonlight.

“Have you ever felt more soothed?” Selina asked. Jolene looked over her shoulder, seeing Selina had followed her outside. “Your first night spent under the Alola’s calm moon. You can make the argument that the moon’s the same everywhere-” Jolene closed her mouth, having just been about to do that very thing “-but in Alola, the moonlight feels...more peaceful. I could stay out here all night.”

“I don’t blame you.” Jolene closed her eyes, feeling the breeze on her face. “I dunno if it’s just the two years of prison, but this...this is better than I remember it in Kanto.”

“I felt the same when I first came out here,” Selina replied. “Picking Alola as the place where I retired from my old career was a smart move. But this isn’t about me. Are _ you _ ready to meet everything Alola has to offer?”

“I...” Jolene opened her eyes, biting her lip. “I guess?”

Selina snorted, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “You remind me of my husband. Both of you need to learn to have a little wonder in your life.”

“I think that’s part of why I’m here, with this rehab program,” Jolene replied, rolling her eyes. “Alolan wonder to sprinkle me up to being a proper citizen.”

“Then let’s start with some Alolan food in you,” Selina replied.


	2. Load Game [Wooden Ring]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really sorry about this update being so delayed! Life hit me hard and fast, as I know it did for 99% of the population of the world. I've been agonizing over this for a hot fucking minute and I can only hope that these ~4,800 words help people with everything. It's funny, I'm writing this note before I whack the chapter with Grammarly in the Chapter Text box below, so see y'all on the other side!

The next morning, they went over rules. Compared to her father, it was very easy for Jolene to see that Kukui was flying by the seat of his pants with this program and that Selina wasn’t necessarily helping with bringing more order into it. Selina was only a little bit more pragmatic than Kukui, but they both seemed to be making things up as they went.

“So, the rules for this island,” Kukui replied, “are that you’re going to be alongside my assistant, Lillie, for a lot of it, and the Kahuna’s grandson, Hau. They’re young, but capable and smart. They’ll be checking in with us every so often about how you’re all doing. If you do well on this island, then we’ll revise some things for the next one if you want to split up from them.”

“Wait.” Jolene blinked. “That’s it?”

“Were you expecting more?” Selina asked.

“Um...yeah?” Jolene couldn’t believe this. “I’m a criminal in a rehab program. How old are these kids?”

“Both are eleven,” Kukui replied.

“Eleven.” Jolene let a deadpan tone into her voice. “I’m twenty-four. If I wasn’t me, if you had ‘done something  _ crazier _ ’ and picked an asshole or someone more violent, they could verbally manipulate and/or physically overpower the kids.” Jolene ran a hand through her hair. “Prof, you’re smarter than that, right?”

Kukui and Selina looked at each other. Kukui still wore his trademark grin and Selina grumbled, pulling some money out of her purse and handing it over to Kukui.

“What.” Jolene blinked again.

“You just won a bet for me, Jolene,” Kukui replied. “The first part of this was designed to test that you weren’t lying to me about children, but also to see how your morals stood.” He put the money in his lab coat pocket. “Selina decided to make it a monetary bet.” Kukui grinned at Jolene, who was swiftly raising an eyebrow. “You’re not as bad a person as you or the Kanto police think, Jolene. You easily got worried about children you didn’t even know, arguing in a protective manner for their good. I think spending time with them will help you and them grow into fine trainers.”

Jolene raised a finger, opening her mouth, then shut it. She sighed. “Okay. Sure, I’ll be Mama Ursaring and they’ll be my Teddiursa. What’s the worst that can happen?”

“That’s...well, not the spirit, but you’re very adjacent!” Kukui answered. “Now, let’s use Agility and get a move on! Your new Pokémon partner is waiting out there!”

“You mean...you haven’t caught it?” Jolene asked.

Selina answered, “Traditions are different here, in Alola. You don’t just pick your starter: they have to pick you back.”

“Huh. That actually seems fairer,” Jolene replied. She got up from the table, stretching. “Okay, Prof, how we gonna do this then?”

“Follow me, Jolene, I have it all thought out.”

* * *

And that’s how Jolene found herself wondering how the heck Pokémon Professors got their credentials because Kukui’s plan wasn’t...well, even twelve percent of an actual plan.

“Just double-checking,” Jolene replied, sitting on a rock along Route 1, “your plan was to wander around here until a Grubbin showed up?”

“They’re usually out here all the time, I don’t get why today of all days they’re not,” Kukui answered, squinting at the tall grass.

Jolene huffed a sigh and looked in the trees nearby. She could see some bird Pokémon in the trees (Kukui called them Pikipek, Jolene faintly remembered). She hummed, watching it for a moment before readying herself to pounce. It looked in the grass, just like Kukui was, and then flew from its perch. Jolene got up, ignored Kukui’s question, and followed it. When it swooped down at the grass, she put herself in between its target and the bird. She grit her teeth at the Peck hitting her in the shoulder, but stood strong. She swat at the Pikipek, imitating her old Arbok’s hissing and intimidation displays. The Pikipek gave an angry chirp and flew back to the tree.

She looked down, seeing a hole in the ground. She took out a treat — a Pokébean, whatever those were — and laid it at the mouth of the hole. “It’s okay, itty bitty. You can come out.”

Two little orange mandibles poked out of the hole, followed by a pair of black eyes. Hardened orange carapace, just like the one from the picture. It didn’t come up beyond that, just watching her.

Jolene left the bean and moved away from the hole. “Have a good day, itty bitty.”

She exited the tall grass and Kukui walked up to her, whispering, “What-” Jolene held up three fingers and silently counted down with them. Then there was a quiet, rhythmic stridulation from behind Jolene. She turned, smirking at the little Grubbin out of its hole.

“Hey, itty bitty, what’re you doing so far out of your hidey-hole?” she asked as it scrambled over to her. It climbed up her pant leg, settling itself in an empty large pocket. “You wanna hitch a ride?” It stridulated again, poking its head out of the pocket. “You wanna make it official?” she asked, taking out a Pokéball. She lowered the ball down to it and it poked it with its mandible. The ball opened and in the Grubbin went. Tick. Tick. Tick. Tock.

Jolene smirked at Kukui. “See?”

He blinked at her, looking a thousand miles away. She frowned and snapped her fingers, making him jump. “Sorry, I was just...lost in thought. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen anyone handle a bug type that well.”

“Bad thoughts or good ones?” she asked, letting the Grubbin back out and letting it nestle in its chosen pocket.

“Nostalgic ones,” Kukui answered. “When I was a boy, I went on the island challenge with a friend who favored bug types himself. You remind me of him a lot.”

“That good or bad?” Jolene asked again, leaning to her side and gently running a finger over the sides of the Grubbin.

Kukui hummed and was silent. She let him be, let him watch her as she got acquainted with her new tiny partner. It was a little on the small side, lucky for her, so she could keep using that pocket as a portable home for it. Naturally liked staying out of sight, but didn’t seem modest. It was making its mind up about her, treating her like the Mantine to its Remoraid, very quickly. But it was finicky about how she pet it, leaning this way and that to teach her how it wanted to be touched.

“I think it’s good,” Kukui finally replied and she looked up to see him smiling again. “We might give each other closure.”

“Whatever floats your boat, prof,” Jolene answered. “Now, gimme the rundown on the squirt here.”

* * *

Jolene spent the next three days getting a good foundation with the Grubbin. According to Kukui, it was a female of its species. Unlike the Weedle line that she was used to working with, the eyes were completely ornamental: their only purpose seemed to be communicating with generally intelligent creatures rather than being actual sensory organs. And Jolene wasn’t complaining about the emoting: it helped a lot in learning what this small creature’s boundaries were.

Instead, it seemed to sense everything around it with a system similar to lateral lines, which was something entirely outside of Jolene’s experience range. Which made it a challenge. But once Jolene realized that the Grubbin could tell people apart by some electric wavelength (Kukui was very amused, watching Jolene work this out for herself), she had a promise to make. 

“No one’s ever sneaking up on us ever again,” Jolene promised the Grubbin. “You sense ‘em, I’ll sock ‘em.”

The Grubbin responded well to every one of Jolene’s protective instincts, eventually feeling some confidence to climb up out of its favored pocket and rest on her arm and shoulders. The grey part of her body was soft and she was greedy for Jolene to trace the circles along her sides. It made Jolene’s short hair and body hair stand on end after absentmindedly doing that for an hour one day.

“Right, that,” Kukui laughed, seeing Jolene run into his house in a panic. “Grubbin will harvest static electricity to help them grow through the circles on their sides. They evolve into Charjabug once they’re exposed to enough static electricity.”

“Professor Kukui, is someone there?” asked a quiet voice from upstairs.

“Ah! Lillie, come down and meet Jolene. She’ll be escorting you to the ruins for your research,” Kukui called up.

The hatch to the loft opened and a short, thin girl came down the ladder. She wore a white dress. She nervously twirled a bit of her pale blonde hair around her finger, looking up at Jolene with pale sea-green eyes (Jolene had never felt so short in her whole life, 5’9” was a respectable tall height in Kanto, but here was an eleven-year-old making her feel like the nine-inch difference between them was astronomically tiny). At first glance, the two of them might’ve been related, but subtle shit was off: Jolene was more of a cream soda blonde than the girl’s buttercream blonde and their eyes were  _ close, _ but not identical. For Jolene, looking at this girl, it was a little like looking at one of her old pictures of when she was still living with her dad before the Team Rocket nonsense. Right down to the obviously expensive, neat, and sterile white clothing. The major difference is that Jolene always had an undercurrent of bite to her in how she stood and behaved (something her father loved and hated). This girl didn’t have bite at all.

“H-hello,” she replied, her voice a little shaky, but rich in that formal tone that Jolene instantly recognized. “I’m Lillie.”

“I’m Jolene,” she replied, “s’nice to meet you.” She could see Lillie’s eyes ghost over to her old burn scar on her right jaw and smiled. “Houndoom got me, years ago. Ain’t nothing to fuss about.”

“O-oh, sorry, you probably get a lot of people staring at that,” Lillie replied, biting her lip.

Jolene chuckled softly. “Yeah, but you’re a kid, you get slack from me on it. Not like you’re an adult who’s gonna make nasty assumptions on it from the get-go, that’s when I get fussy about people staring.” Lillie nodded and Jolene quickly asked, “So, what kind of research are you doing at the ruins? I know absolutely zero things about Alola’s history.”

Lillie perked up a bit. “Oh! Um...I’m researching ancient legends of the island. History has a habit of repeating itself and I thought it would be helpful if I looked into it before it became relevant, given that’s been a recent trend in other regions.”

“Smart,” Jolene replied and Lillie blushed lightly. “Prof, can you get us a map of the island so I can start brainstorming a travel plan with Lillie?”

Travel planning was always something that came easy to Jolene, what with how long she had dreamed and schemed of running away from her dad. Even if Melemele was smaller than Kanto, it was a skill that came in handy.

“Okay, that’s the bare necessities of my travel plans,” Jolene replied, “Lillie, we’ve got the ruins for you, anything else you absolutely want to hit up?”

Lillie looked at her with wide eyes and Jolene’s heart  _ ached.  _ “O-oh, um...” She looked over the map. “I don’t want to be a bother-”

“There will be times,” Jolene replied, “where I will have us camp in the middle of nowhere and train for a couple days, after catching a new member for my team. You will absolutely not be a bother. Think of it as asking for payment for those days where I’ll be delaying us or whatever.”

Lillie bit her lip. Jolene took her eyes off the girl, looking down at the map. She asked herself where she would go if she were free from her father at Lillie’s age. Her eyes drifted over to the large city in the southwest: Hau’oli City. She would’ve wanted to shift up her entire look so her father’s cronies would have more trouble finding her. That was the only place on this island that would hold a salon and a meaningful clothing store.

“I’ll be a role model,” Jolene replied, causing Lillie to snap her attention to her. Jolene took one of the thumbtacks and pinned one in Hau’oli City. “Hate my natural hair color,” she said, gesturing at the shoulder-length bob. “I’d like to go into town to figure out if they’ve got a salon to fix that for me.”

“Oh.” Lillie started twirling a bit of her hair around her finger again. “Why do you hate your natural hair color? It’s very pretty.”

Jolene gave a small half-smile. “Thanks. I got it from my mom: dad’s got teal hair. You really think it’s pretty?” Hook, line, and...

“Yes!” Sinker? Lillie looked the most animated Jolene had seen her, somehow sitting up taller (she’d been sitting up straight before, perfect posture, but now Lillie seemed to have a bit of  _ flare _ that she hadn’t had before) and utterly defensive. “Your hair color is very pretty. If you truly dislike it, you should change it, but I personally think it’s pretty.”

“Why’s that?” Jolene asked, tilting her head in true confusion now. Okay, this hadn’t been the reaction Jolene was expecting. Flustered shy sputtering, sure, but animated and seemingly passionate debate didn’t seem to be on the table until a moment ago. “I’m just a normal blonde-”

“It’s a nice and warm color,” Lillie replied, “that brings a nice warmth to your skin tone and gives a gentle aspect to your appearance.”

Jolene blinked. She’d been called many things, but gentle wasn’t anywhere on that list. “...thanks, kid. Maybe I’ll finally give it a chance. For the record, your hair’s pretty too.”

And with that salvo, the ball was back in Jolene’s court again as Lillie finally did the flustered sputtering she’d expected.

Kid had more surprises than Jolene thought she did.

* * *

“Thatta girl,” Jolene gently coached, “open-air ain’t so bad. You’ve got backup, itty-bit.”

Her Grubbin stridulated at her, giving her baby eyes.

“Anybody messes with you is also messin’ with me,” Jolene replied, “but the same goes in reverse: anybody messing with me is messing with you. You might have to battle for me and there won’t always be nice dirt for you to battle from.”

Battling was no problem for the Grubbin: she was a fast tunneler and liked ambush tactics with her mandibles. But Jolene had to get her comfortable with being not submerged for at least a little while before they got serious with this island challenge.

“Alola!”

She looked over from her little training spot, whistling to call the Grubbin back into her pocket. A young boy was jogging over, waving happily at her. He had dark brown skin with dark green hair pulled up into a small tail. He wore a black shirt and orange board shorts. He jogged right up to her, happy as one of Kukui’s Rockruffs.

“Hello?” Jolene asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

“Have you seen a Pichu run this way?” he asked. “Mine is on the run- oh! There he is. Is that your Grubbin?”

Her head snapped over to where her Grubbin had been. A small Pichu was excitedly running circles around her itty bit, electricity leaking off of him in little bursts. Her Grubbin didn’t seem scared, just...weirdly content? Even when she got a bit of electricity splashed onto her, the Grubbin wasn’t displaying the typical “boundary crossed” behavior. Jolene looked back to the boy.

“Yeah, that’s my Grubbin,” she replied. “Why was your Pichu on the run?”

“Tutu caught him getting into the Pokémon food,” he answered, “and was gonna give him a good lecture about it, but my Pichu ran for it before I could get him to settle down.” He gave her a grin. “My name’s Hau!”

“Jolene,” she replied, holding out a hand.

His grin somehow got wider. “You’re the Jolene that’s coming with me on the island challenge, right?”

“Yup,” she answered, popping the p. “Your Pichu’s pretty friendly.”

“Tutu says he gets that from me,” Hau replied, rubbing the back of his head. “Copies me a lot.” He shifted from foot to foot, looking from their Pokémon back to her. “Sorry if this is rude, but why are you going on the island challenge?”

“Part of my rehab program,” Jolene answered. “I’m from Kanto: we don’t have anything really like this where I’m from. People in charge of me back home trust Kukui to try straightening me out.” She tilted her head at him. “Why do you wanna know?”

“Thought it’d be neat to compare reasons: most people want to go on the challenge to prove something to someone,” Hau replied.

“So, I guess I’m proving to the people back home that I’m better than they think I am.” Jolene shrugged. “This was better than the alternative and it’s already paying off: Grubbin’s a good partner. My old Arbok can rest in peace now that I’ve got a new partner.”

“What happened to your Arbok?” Hau asked. His eyes widened as Jolene gave him a pretty small side-eye. He winced. “That was rude, wasn’t it?”

“Little bit, but you get a pass this time,” Jolene answered, running a hand through her hair. “I’ll make the trip easier. Sore topics with me: my parents, my Arbok, and what I used to do in Kanto. I’ll initiate if I wanna talk about those things. Everything else is free game.”

“Good to know,” Hau replied. He paused a moment, watching his Pichu excitedly chitter with her Grubbin. He quietly asked, “Can we do a fist bump for parent issues?”

Jolene gave a small smirk and held out her fist to Hau. He grinned again and gave her a fist bump.

“Oh, hey, do you wanna meet my Tutu?” he asked. “You’ll probably meet him anyway, with the island challenge and all. You can stay over and have dinner if you want: Pichu probably doesn’t wanna split from his new friend yet.”

“It probably helps that said new friend absorbs the small electrical charges that he’s putting out,” Jolene answered.

“Wait, that’s why he’s not leaking as much as he usually does?” Hau asked. “Because your Grubbin is- wait that doesn’t make sense?”

Jolene shrugged. “She absorbs static electricity from me and, according to Kukui, Grubbin evolves into Charjabug faster with more electricity in their lives. Something about electricity triggering the chrysalis phase.” She bit her tongue a bit, not wanting to dump a lot of information on the poor kid. “How about you ask your tutu and we can set up a playdate for these two tomorrow? I’m staying in a nice house on Route 1, south of Iki Village.”

“Oh, with Ms. Calabrese?” He didn’t wait for her answer, instead, he ran off to the top of the hill. He gave a loud and long whistle, his Pichu’s ears flicking up at it and running toward him. Hau scooped up his Pichu in an arm and waved briefly before jogging off.

Jolene looked over at her Grubbin, who was scrabbling over to her with little legs and an inquisitive look. She gently picked up the little bug and muttered to her, “Nice kid.”

* * *

“You’ve got a visitor.”

The words flashed Jolene out of her colorful room into the grey walls of her old cell. She shook her head, keeping herself in the present. She looked over at the doorway. “Who?”

“The kahuna of the island,” Selina answered.

“Kahuna...they’re like the gym leader elite four types,” Jolene answered, more for herself than Selina, getting up from her desk and rolling her shoulders back. “He out in the main room?” Selina nodded and Jolene let her Grubbin out of the ball and into her pocket.

Everybody needed backup now and then.

Jolene walked out and saw a mountain of a man sitting at the dining room table. He was incredibly muscular, but in a way that suggested a very vigorous physical lifestyle over the kind of muscular she’d seen back in Unova and Kanto. His skin was the same dark brown of Hau’s, but his hair was a stark white that gave him a sharp and experienced look to him (especially with how his beard was styled). His dark brown eyes watched her and she felt like she was being sized up.

“Good evening, Ms. Jokela,” his voice rumbled.

She sat down across from him, gently coaxing her Grubbin into her lap. “Evenin’, sir. How can I help you?”

He gave her a smile that derailed her immediately. “I promise, I’m not so stuffy as to be needing the title of sir. My name is Hala and I’m just stopping in to check in on you. Have you adjusted alright?”

“Time change was awful, but I’ve always been a quick changer for that,” she answered. “Everything else has been...great, honestly. Nobody told me how these islands are just...so chill.”

Hala chuckled. “I imagine we do seem more laid back compared to Kanto’s huffing and puffing.”

“Laid back, but not stupid,” Jolene replied. “Definitely smarter in places. Like the tradition to have the starter choose you back, I like that a lot.”

Hala’s eyes lit up a bit and his smile widened. “Oh? How come?”

“Do you know how many trainers I’ve seen in Kanto who all have no idea how to handle a Pokémon? We have a roving band of Squirtles who steal from humans because no one teaches these kids how to act with them. You get these imperious ten-year-olds throwing command after command and expecting every command to be followed because they think being trainer means being master. And there’s not a lot being done to dissuade that misconception, considering the title of Pokémon Master bein’ used a lot.” Jolene huffed. “So it’s nice to see that the starters have a word in it over here. Pokémon are better judges of character than most people give them credit for.”

“Sometimes. I find it depends on the Pokémon just as it depends on the person,” Hala replied. “Some Pokémon are naive, some are wise.”

Jolene nodded. She gestured with her hands as she replied, her hands sharply emphasizing her points. “Yeah, no, I get that, but in Kanto, you’ve got the mix-mash of differing personalities considered- nah,  _ romanticized _ to be character buildin’. And sometimes, it is worth romanticizing, when you get a trainer who’s willin’ to put the effort into researching their Pokémon and changing tacks with ‘em. But sometimes, the kid’s a brat who just wants a mindless slave.”

“Do you think my grandson is an example of that?”

Jolene blinked slowly, tilting her head. “We talkin’ the same Hau? Hau’s definitely not a brat, he’s got Good Kid written all over him in some kind of nice friendly yellow-green color, in 300 point font, in a smooth font with rounded serifs. Bolded, underlined, italicized.”

Hala’s shoulders relaxed a hair and Jolene figured that she just passed some kind of test. “I have never put it quite like that, but I share the sentiment,” Hala replied.

“You’re just tryin’ to figure me out before I go off on a grand adventure with your grandson,” Jolene replied. “I get it. That’s responsible. I almost clobbered Kukui myself when he said I’d only be left around with two eleven-year-olds because if I wasn’t me if he’d chosen some other grunt to do that with, they’d be in massive danger.” She snorted. “But apparently, Kukui thinks me bein’ Mama Ursaring and them being my Teddiursa will be healthy for all parties involved.”

“Perhaps. Some individuals, when around children, choose to become the best versions of themselves for the sake of the children.” Jolene got the distinct impression Hau’s parents weren’t such people, with Hala’s vocal tone. “Some people simply become worse, seeing children as objects to be discarded or hoarded.”

“Preaching to the choir,” Jolene replied.

Hala tilted his head and Jolene knew he was looking at her burn scars. She tried not to bristle too much. “Those are from a parent?”

“My dad’s Houndoom,” she answered, figuring she’d need all her cards on the table, “always took my dad’s orders without complaint. Loyal beast, to the end. I had gotten wind to a big op my dad was running for Team Rocket and tried to inform a gym leader. Dad caught me.” Jolene stopped herself from touching her scars, not needing to remember what it had felt like at  _ that _ moment.

Hala frowned at that. “Burns from a Houndoom never stop hurting.”

“Yeah,” Jolene chuckled sardonically, “that’s an old wives’ tale that’s unfortunately true. Have to take painkillers every morning so I can think straight enough to go grab a coffee, then once the caffeine hits I’m fine for the rest of the day. Thankfully dear old Dad knew from doing this to other people that the pain isn’t always the same intensity as the acquisition, so he wasn’t crippling an asset. Just giving a lifelong reminder.”

Hala was silent for a long time, looking at her across the table. She did her best not to fidget, but her Grubbin was trying to snuggle her stomach and that was tickling her a bit. Jolene scooped up the little squirt, helping her get the angle she wanted to do. The Grubbin rubbed the side of her body along Jolene’s stomach, generating a bit of static electricity. Jolene smiled at her, figuring it was the Grubbin’s way of saying she was ready to throw down for Jolene.

“Tomorrow morning,” Hala replied and Jolene’s attention snapped up to him, “after your painkillers kick in, I want you to come to my home in Iki Town. Come dressed for lots of movement, heavy exercise. Bring your Grubbin along.”

Jolene tilted her head, frowning a little. “Okay. Do I get to know why?”

“You said it yourself: I want to figure you out before you go on a journey with my grandson. I teach classes for a variety of martial arts.” Hala stood up from the table, rolling his shoulders back. “Words are all well and fine. But let’s see how you fight.”

Jolene watched, tilting her head. She sized Hala up herself, again, putting together the information she got from their talk with how he presented himself. She gave a soft sigh, leaning back in her chair. “You like fighting types, don’t you?”

Hala raised an eyebrow, his lips curling softly at the corners. “Is that a problem?”

“No,” Jolene answered easily, drawling a bit. “Not in the slightest. Just figuring you out some is all.”

He smiled, his eyes having the kind of mischievous sparkle to it that Jolene thought only fictional old men could have. “I suppose that’s only fair.”

* * *

Training with Hala was hard. Not just the exercise: it was the atmosphere. His regular students were all curious (she could read it, in all of them: their eyes, how they glanced at her, each person a collection of little tells) and they all ranged from old men to men her age to boys, with the sprinkling of a badass old lady and a ferocious five-year-old girl for flavor. 

“Did you lose a fight with a Charizard?” a little boy asked her from somewhere behind her.

Jolene stretched like she was supposed to. She opened her mouth to answer when Hau’s voice answered for her. “That doesn’t look like stretching, Hunter!”

She looked over her shoulder, seeing Hau sidestep around her to go get the boy back to his mat. Hau gave her a thumbs up over the boy’s head and she gave Hau a nod and a soft smile.

Her Grubbin climbed up her leg and gave her a stridulation that sounded like a question. Jolene gave a close-ish copy of the Grubbin’s happy stridulation and the Grubbin settled on her shoulder.

Eventually, everyone was called to stand around a small fighting platform in the center of the area. 

Hala stood on it before he began walking slowly and looking at everyone. Jolene recognized his look, him sizing people up.

“Jabez, Jolene, up onto the ring.”

Jolene spotted a muscular man step up onto the wooden platform, followed by a Growlithe. She tensed, seeing it playfully shoot the tiniest Embers at its trainer. Her eyes narrowed in on the flames, the Growlithe’s natural orange flames turning to black in her mind as she remembered another Fire-type dog. She blinked out of it as her Grubbin’s stridulations reached her, far too close to her ear to be in her usual perch on her shoulder. She looked and the Grubbin was more or less hanging off of her shirt collar with its mandibles near her ear. Jolene scooped her up (ignoring her shaking hands) and stepped up to the wooden platform.

She gently put the Grubbin down onto the wooden platform. Jolene looked at her battle opponent and inhaled.

Inhale.

Exhale.

She squared her shoulders.

“Match, begin!”


End file.
